Concussion education new focus
Troy Vincent recalls going back to the huddle and forgetting to look at the sideline for the play, even though it was his job to relay the signal.
He mentions the days after one concussion when he couldn’t remember phone numbers and kept thinking his car was running. When he sees clips of himself knocked unconscious, he cringes.
“I’m not sure if we – athletes – know what a concussion is,” said Vincent, a veteran defensive back and the president of the NFL Players Association.
The NFL is taking steps to educate players on the subject and make sure they report concussions, implementing a whistle-blower system when training camps start next month. The league hopes that will ease pressure on players to take the field with a concussion.
“It’s an important element of what we’re trying to accomplish here,” NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said Tuesday after a conference with medical personnel from every team in the league. “I have said repeatedly and will continue to say that medical decisions must override any competitive decisions.
“And if anyone feels they are being forced onto the field when they are not ready to play, we want to know about that and look into it.”
Although details need to be worked out with the players union, the new system allows anyone to anonymously report when doctors are pressured to clear players or when players are pressured to play. It’s one of several changes the league is making in its effort to manage concussions.
Around the league
An antitrust suit claiming officials and taxpayers were pushed into financing a new stadium to keep the Bengals in Cincinnati was filed after time had run out, a federal appeals court ruled. The suit filed by Hamilton County against the Bengals and the NFL was thrown out because it was not filed within a four-year statute of limitations. … Philadelphia Eagles tight end and long snapper Mike Bartrum retired, ending a 13-year career. … Cleveland Browns rookie receiver Mike Mason was arrested after refusing demands from two off-duty police officers to leave a downtown Cleveland nightclub at closing time.